[MLA] Avenged Sevenfold

[Robert Ludwig]

Hi Kevin and Ian,

I agree, Kevin,  that Andy Wallace’s mixes are not that dynamic to begin with, but for heavy metal it’s pretty good.

I also agree with you, Ian, that, being human, Avenged take the negative reviews 100x more to heart than the compliments!  

I think the band are talking increasing the level +1.5 to +2dB, so nothing horrendous.  They are re-releasing the “Stage” album with an album of bonus tracks.

BTW, Ian, I just saw the Resolution magazine article on your Dynameter and the various streaming services.  Very nice!

Best,
Bob L.




> On Apr 23, 2017, at 11:48 AM, Kevin Gross <kevin.p.gross at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Spotify uses the ReplayGain algorithm for loudness measurement. It might help to finish the work to update ReplayGain to use BS.1770.
> 
> I think Spotify actually uses a lower target level than YouTube. Lower target should help improve normalization. If limiting is in play, that complicates things. I don't think we advocate limiting as part of normalization. 
> 
> Sent from my mobile thingy
> 
> On Apr 22, 2017 5:55 PM, "Ian Shepherd" <ian at mastering-media.co.uk <mailto:ian at mastering-media.co.uk>> wrote:
> 
> Hi Bob,
> 
> I’m really sorry to hear this, I can imagine how discouraging it must be. 
> 
> For what it’s worth, I can’t agree with the band’s comment that the streaming services aren’t levelling it, though. I did some quick tests and YouTube and iTunes both play the album at a similar level to both the last Trivium album (another dynamic release) and Death Magnetic. There are audible differences in the sound, mainly in EQ response and density, but in terms of perceived and measured level there was very little in it, and on some songs A7X comes out on top. I haven’t checked but I imagine that the same is true of TIDAL.
> 
> The one exception was Spotify, in which case A7X does sound noticeably quieter, which makes sense since they use the highest normalisation level, but is a little surprising given that they also use a limiter and normalise up - or at least, they used to. I’m guessing this is the platform that has skewed their perception the most.
> 
> Personally I’ve seen two very negative reviews of the sound of the album, but most of the responses have been very favourable. I’m struck by the phrase “very poor production” since I saw exactly that wording on a forum post somewhere and it reminds me of the research which shows that bad experiences are seven times more impactful on people than good ones. If that holds in this case we would expect the band to read 6 good reviews and one bad one, and come away with an overall negative impression - or get 6 positive fan comments and one bad one and focus mainly on the critical one. The deck is stacked against us !
> 
> None of this really helps though, especially since Spotify is still such a big player. I guess if there’s any good news it’s that the band only want “at least a little more” level on the next release - there would be room to lift this album several dBs and make them feel more secure with only minimal compromises to the sound.
> 
> Still frustrating though, we always want people to completely love the results of our work ! Makes me want to try reaching out to Spotify again and see if they’ll reconsider their normalisation level and algorithm.
> 
> Ian 
> 
> 
> 
>> On 21 Apr 2017, at 21:38, Robert Ludwig <gatewaybob at mac.com <mailto:gatewaybob at mac.com>> wrote:
>> 
>> FYI everyone:
>> 
>> Matt from Avenged Sevenfold called and said that they need to put at least a little more level on their future material, he said that so many fans complained about the “very poor production” on the album and how low-level it is and I guess they really complained a lot!  He said the streaming services are not leveling it out and their stuff makes fans turn up the volume too much when their new songs come one.  A valid point at this time in history I guess.
>> 
>> On another note, a client was in who listens to Google Play and he complained that the levels were all over the place and they should do something about it!
>> 
>> All else is well here.
>> 
>> Best,
>> Bob L.
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